Traditional steelmaking processes typically involve melting scrap steel using an electric arc furnace (EAF) and producing large amounts of standard sized billets through the casting process that are then cooled and stored on the grounds of the mill. The standard sized billets stored in inventory at the mill site must then be returned to the plant or mill and re-heated prior to entry into the rolling mill for forming various products. As only standard sized billets are stored in inventory, only certain, generally standard lengths of product can be formed. In instances where more customized product is required, the standard lengths of product are cut to size resulting in material waste. Accordingly, traditional steelmaking processes can be characterised, generally, as having two main stages or phases of operation with the melting and casting stages occurring in one portion of the plant and the rolling of the product occurring in another portion of the plant with a cooling stage and storage period occurring between the two main stages of the operation. Therefore, traditional steelmaking processes are rather discontinuous operations requiring a lengthy cooling stage in between processing in the melting and casting portion of the plant and processing in the rolling portion of the plant often requiring the storage of inventory.
Electric arc furnaces used for steelmaking processes are generally quite large (e.g. 120 ton units) and require large amounts of electrical power in order to run at capacity. Traditional steelmaking mills are also generally quite large scale operations requiring large infrastructure. The large infrastructure is not only required to accommodate the large-sized electric arc furnaces that are traditionally used in these operations, but is also required in order to ensure a production scale that is sufficient to produce large amounts of steel in order to meet demand in a cost effective manner. Large steel-making operations of this type generally require a large tract of land that is typically far removed from city centres in order to accommodate the large infrastructure required for traditional steelmaking facilities and in order to meet zoning and/or environmental requirements. Large scale traditional steelmaking operations are, therefore, often limited in terms of their location and are also often associated with significant transport costs related to the transport of materials/product to and from the plant.
Due in part to changing economies and environmental concerns, there is a need for improved and/or alternative steelmaking processes and facilities that may offer a more continuous and efficient process, and that are more adaptable to changing economic and environmental landscapes.